9' table vs 7' - why they play differently

skipbales · Oct 30, 2018

I have struggled with why a 9' table plays so much differently than a 7'. I didn't post this under equipment because all the responses would be about table construction and I don't think that is why. I would like your input. Here is my analysis.

In my experience, 9' tables play faster, quality for quality, the smaller the table the slower it plays, as a general rule.

1. Equipment - Slate is slate. It is equally hard and if it is flat and smooth, that is its job. You can put high quality Simonis cloth on both tables so I don't think it is the cloth. You could argue larger tables have better rails but I don't think Diamond purposely makes tables with rails of lower quality for their 7' tables. I also don't think this is enough to make up any differences.

2. Distance - This is what I THINK makes the difference. The larger the table the fewer collisions. Collisions with other balls and rails reduces the forward roll, slows the balls down and "kills" the action. Also the balls have more time to develop forward roll so fewer balls collide with slide and more are rolling and rolling faster.

Since the balls are the same size on all the tables the balls occupy more area, proportionally, on the small table. When I play on a 6 1/2' bar box, (loosely called a 7') I have to deal with a lot of congestion, poor spreads and no action. I have always heard this blamed on quality but for some reason I woke up this morning thinking of it and reached a different conclusion.

What think you all?

One Pocket John · Oct 30, 2018

skipbales said:
I have struggled with why a 9' table plays so much differently than a 7'. I didn't post this under equipment because all the responses would be about table construction and I don't think that is why. I would like your input. Here is my analysis.

In my experience, 9' tables play faster, quality for quality, the smaller the table the slower it plays, as a general rule.

1. Equipment - Slate is slate. It is equally hard and if it is flat and smooth, that is its job. You can put high quality Simonis cloth on both tables so I don't think it is the cloth. You could argue larger tables have better rails but I don't think Diamond purposely makes tables with rails of lower quality for their 7' tables. I also don't think this is enough to make up any differences.

2. Distance - This is what I THINK makes the difference. The larger the table the fewer collisions. Collisions with other balls and rails reduces the forward roll, slows the balls down and "kills" the action. Also the balls have more time to develop forward roll so fewer balls collide with slide and more are rolling and rolling faster.

Since the balls are the same size on all the tables the balls occupy more area, proportionally, on the small table. When I play on a 6 1/2' bar box, (loosely called a 7') I have to deal with a lot of congestion, poor spreads and no action. I have always heard this blamed on quality but for some reason I woke up this morning thinking of it and reached a different conclusion.

What think you all?

Hey Skip. I feel your pain.
I have a 4.5 x 9.0 table with a playing surface of 50" x 100" or 5000 sq.in. I practice 2 or 3 hours everyday.
Here's the kicker. I play a friend and we play weekly (about 3 hours) on a 3.5 x 7.0 Diamond with a playing surface of 40" x 80" 3200 sq.in.

That represents a 37% reduction in playing surface area compared to a 4.5 x 9.0 table.

It's not until later in the sets that I start to get a feel for the reduction in size and begin to be able to control the cue ball. Position play on a bar table is way harder than playing position on a regular table.

If I had the room here I would install a bar box and practice on it for a few days before my match with my friend. But, unfortunately the wife wont let me move all of the living room furniture out.

Have fun out there.

John

Bob Jewett · Oct 30, 2018

If you want a real congestion challenge, play on a 6-foot table with standard balls.

When I first started playing on small tables it was a challenge to get the speed right. It took several back and forths before things started to be natural.

Then there is also the quality problem. The strangest cushions I've ever seen were on a 7-foot table at a major tournament. Almost impossible to judge 3-rail position.

skipbales · Oct 30, 2018

Bob Jewett said:
If you want a real congestion challenge, play on a 6-foot table with standard balls.

When I first started playing on small tables it was a challenge to get the speed right. It took several back and forths before things started to be natural.

Then there is also the quality problem. The strangest cushions I've ever seen were on a 7-foot table at a major tournament. Almost impossible to judge 3-rail position.

About the speed issue do you agree it is the increased roll more than poor table quality? I always hear the quality blamed but Diamond makes a pretty good 7'. People were saying it is the slate or cloth but the slate is just a hard flat surface and both can have the same cloth.

Yes I have played on 6'. Funny how the people in the bars call them all 7'. I had to measure one to prove to some they were 6 1/2' playing area and one bar has the actual 6'x3'.

skipbales · Oct 30, 2018

One Pocket John said:
Hey Skip. I feel your pain.
I have a 4.5 x 9.0 table with a playing surface of 50" x 100" or 5000 sq.in. I practice 2 or 3 hours everyday.
Here's the kicker. I play a friend and we play weekly (about 3 hours) on a 3.5 x 7.0 Diamond with a playing surface of 40" x 80" 3200 sq.in.

That represents a 37% reduction in playing surface area compared to a 4.5 x 9.0 table.

It's not until later in the sets that I start to get a feel for the reduction in size and begin to be able to control the cue ball. Position play on a bar table is way harder than playing position on a regular table.

If I had the room here I would install a bar box and practice on it for a few days before my match with my friend. But, unfortunately the wife wont let me move all of the living room furniture out.

Have fun out there.

John

My table at home is called a "residential 8'". By that they mean 44x88 or 7 1/2'. It is a good compromise. It is actually easier for me to move up than down. It is long enough that the distance feels ok on the big tables but the crowding on the small ones is a pain.

If you even touch the long rail into a corner pocket on my table it will rattle. On the 6 1/2' Valleys I see them hit two diamonds up and they still go in. :wink:

One Pocket John · Oct 30, 2018

skipbales said:
My table at home is called a "residential 8'". By that they mean 44x88 or 7 1/2'. It is a good compromise. It is actually easier for me to move up than down. It is long enough that the distance feels ok on the big tables but the crowding on the small ones is a pain.

If you even touch the long rail into a corner pocket on my table it will rattle. On the 6 1/2' Valleys I see them hit two diamonds up and they still go in. :wink:

Hear ya. My friend also has a 4 x 8 at home he practices on. He adjusts to the 3.4 x 7.0 with no problem at all. I hate it.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Bob Jewett · Oct 30, 2018

skipbales said:
My table at home is called a "residential 8'". By that they mean 44x88 or 7 1/2'. ...

A brief word about standard table measurements. There is no 10' dimension on a 10' table. There is no 9' dimension on a 9' table.

Taking the 9' as an example, there is a true 4.5' dimension. It is the full cloth width including two inches of cushion on each side rail. That makes the actual nose-to-nose dimension 4.5*12-2-2 or 50 inches. If you subtract from that the diameter of a ball, you get the distance a ball travels across the table, which is slightly under four feet. In the long dimension, the ball can travel about 98 inches or 8' 2". Note that the actual playing surface that the base of the ball can touch is much closer to 4x8 than 4.5x9 and that surface does not have a 2:1 length-to-width ratio.

A 10-foot table uses the same system taking 5 feet as the width including the cloth on the cushions. A "four by eight" using the same system would have a width of 48 = 44 +2 + 2, so a 44x88-inch table is the "proper" size.

An "oversize" 8-foot table adds two inches to the width of a standard 8-foot table.

A "3.5x7" table would be 38x76 nose-to-nose, or pretty close to 3x6 as you noted.

Patrick Johnson · Oct 30, 2018

Bob Jewett said:
A brief word about standard table measurements. There is no 10' dimension on a 10' table. There is no 9' dimension on a 9' table.

Taking the 9' as an example, there is a true 4.5' dimension. It is the full cloth width including two inches of cushion on each side rail. That makes the actual nose-to-nose dimension 4.5*12-2-2 or 50 inches. If you subtract from that the diameter of a ball, you get the distance a ball travels across the table, which is slightly under four feet. In the long dimension, the ball can travel about 98 inches or 8' 2". Note that the actual playing surface that the base of the ball can touch is much closer to 4x8 than 4.5x9 and that surface does not have a 2:1 length-to-width ratio.

A 10-foot table uses the same system taking 5 feet as the width including the cloth on the cushions. A "four by eight" using the same system would have a width of 48 = 44 +2 + 2, so a 44x88-inch table is the "proper" size.

An "oversize" 8-foot table adds two inches to the width of a standard 8-foot table.

A "3.5x7" table would be 38x76 nose-to-nose, or pretty close to 3x6 as you noted.

Another interesting thing I didn't know. Thanks!

pj
chgo

FranCrimi · Oct 31, 2018

I think it's the cushions --- the composition, height and pitch. I had a conversation with a table manufacturer and those measurements are a big deal to them, and believe it or not, information that they don't like to share with others.

9' table vs 7' - why they play differently

skipbales

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One Pocket John

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Bob Jewett

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skipbales

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skipbales

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